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Sam has the rules of slackerhood down: Don't be late to class. Don't ever look the teacher in the eye. Develop your blank stare. Since his mom left, he has become an expert in the art of slacking, especially since no one at his new school gets his intense passion for the music of the Pacific Northwest—Nirvana, Hole, Sleater-Kinney. Then his English teacher begins a slam poetry unit and Sam gets paired up with the daunting, scarred, clearly-a-gang-member Luis, who happens to sit next to him in every one of his classes. Slacking is no longer an option—Luis will destroy him. Told in Sam's raw voice and interspersed with vivid poems, Jumped In by Patrick Flores-Scott is a stunning debut novel about differences, friendship, loss, and the power of words.

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I was born in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains just east of Seattle and grew up wanting to be a basketball player. Unfortunately at the time, I had the body and athletic talent of an author.

I played the clarinet in band and became a drama geek in college. I went on to write and act in plays, including "The True History of Coca-Cola in Mexico.' I became a teacher and for years worked with elementary school students who struggle with reading.

I live in Ann Arbor, Michigan with my wonderful wife, Emma and two rascally little boys, Carlos and Diego.